‘Big Brother Canada 3’ pre-game exclusive: Will Bobby Hlad ollie over the competition?

Every season of almost every reality show ever needs at least one guy to be that surfer / skateboarder sort of guy. For “Big Brother Canada 3,” that guy is Bobby Hlad. He’s relatively chill, has a giant tattoo, and is for some reason wearing a hat even though he has on no sleeves. Maybe we’re better at judging contestants on competition shows than we are fashion.

When we talked to Bobby earlier this week via phone (prior to any information being released about this season at all), we’ll give him some credit for being one of the friendliest contestants we talked to. These people have long days, and sometimes after a while there can be a temptation to just give canned answers. Bobby did not do that, and he actually gave us at times small stories! He is almost that perfect guy who you’d want guiding you around a town if you were lost or just wanted a tour; he will relax you, tell fun stories, and encourage you to have a good time. As for “Big Brother Canada,” we’ve got our overall take on his game at the bottom of this article. (You can also click here to see all of our other exclusive pre-game chats with all of the houseguests.)

Tell us about yourself: Your name, where you’re from, your age, and what you do for a living.

Yeah sure! I’m Bobby Hlad, I’m 27 years old, and I’m from Oakville, Ontario. It’s kind of in the suburbs, so I’m kind of in the bubble. But, I still do a lot of the stuff that I love doing there. I am into skateboarding, surfing. I’m kind of an adrenaline junkie sort of guy. (Note: He also works for a family business.)

What made you want to try out for Big Brother Canada this year?

Well you know, when it first came up I thought about it, but I decided not to go for it. The second year I was close to making a video but I didn’t decide to do it. Then one of my girlfriends was nagging me, and [by that I mean] that many of my friends that are girls, nagging me to do it and saying I have the personality to do it. They nagged me to make a video, I finally did it, and here I am.

How big of a fan of the show were you before trying out?

My girlfriends got me into the show I’d say around season 10, and since that time I’ve been completely hooked. I watch ‘After Dark’ for all the seasons, so I guess since season 10 I’ve been a superfan.

If you could compare yourself to someone from either BB Canada or BB USA, who would it be?

I don’t know! (Laughs.) I want to compare myself to Jon because he seems like a super-fun guy. I wish I was smart enough to compare myself to Dan because he was a mastermind. And I’d love to play the game as good as he did.

What’s something about you that would surprise people?

I don’t know. Maybe the fact that I’m a pretty kindhearted guy. I don’t want to come off as a softie in the house because I don’t want people to take advantage of me … I have to make sure I don’t get too attached to my emotions, and figure out how to play the game.

What’s your basic strategy going into the house?

My personality does not let me throw any physical competitions, so I’ll be going 110% in those. If there’s an endurance, I’m going to be going until I either pass out or win. In terms of some of the other competitions such as the mental [ones], I don’t want to be seen as too big of a threat so I may throw some of the mental comps or I won’t do good in them. I’m definitely going to go 100% in the physical competitions, and I’m really going to work to make friendships with everyone in the house so they see more more as a friend than a social threat. That’s when I can plan my sneak attacks!

Is there any one thing you are the most excited to do this season?

I am super-stoked to be in every competition! I’ve loved these in both versions. I’m so stoked to be meeting 15 [or so] new houseguests. I want to know everything I can about them. And just being in the house will be [great].

What do you think your biggest weakness could be?

I guess maybe it would be the mental challenges. I’m a smart guy; I don’t have a photographic memory like Derrick did … I got to do my studies, and hopefully nobody’s going to ask me anything about seasons before season 10.

What are hoping to get out of the show: Money, fame, love, or just a good time?

Definitely for a good time, of course, and an amazing life experience. But definitely for the money. I want to help out the family business; they’ve done so much for me. I want to travel with the money, so it’d be great [to have it]. I don’t want to say for the fame, because it’s always nice to have time for yourself. You don’t want to be followed around all the time, and I want to be able to do my daily routine. I’m a pretty humble guy, but I don’t think I’d ever really be that famous anyway.

If there is one message you would pass along to the Canadian public before entering the game, what would it be?

Watch me ‘After Dark,’ watch live feeds! I’ll be really spontaneous, super crazy, doing lots of fun, stupid stuff. I’m going to be super fun to watch. Even if it doesn’t make it to the show, watch the ‘After Dark’ and the live streams.

Overall impression – Bobby is fun. He’s a little like a Fabio from “Survivor,” mostly in that there is some game there beyond his sort of skateboarder persona. We feel like some of his ideas are probably going to backfire, though; being great at physical competitions is never good, and we feel like having a strong social game may make him a little more of a target than he thinks.

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